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Florida

Kayaking the Everglades: Exploring the River of Grass

Program No. 21349RJ
Discover the delicate beauty of Florida’s Everglades with experts and naturalists, discussing the region’s unique ecology, history and culture as you kayak this great American preserve.

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Prices displayed below are based on per person,doubleoccupancy.

DATES & PRICES

No shuttle Roundtrip airport transfer
Filling Fast!
Jan 14 - Jan 19, 2024
No transfer 1,999
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,099
Filling Fast!
Feb 4 - Feb 9, 2024
No transfer 1,999
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,099
Feb 11 - Feb 16, 2024
SOLD OUT
No transfer 1,999
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,099
Feb 18 - Feb 23, 2024
No transfer 1,999
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,099
Mar 3 - Mar 8, 2024
No transfer 1,999
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,099
Mar 17 - Mar 22, 2024
No transfer 1,999
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,099
Nov 10 - Nov 15, 2024
No transfer 1,749
Roundtrip airport transfer 1,849
Dec 8 - Dec 13, 2024
No transfer 1,749
Roundtrip airport transfer 1,849

DATES & PRICES

No shuttle Roundtrip airport transfer
Filling Fast!
Jan 14 - Jan 19, 2024
No transfer 2,489
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,589
Filling Fast!
Feb 4 - Feb 9, 2024
No transfer 2,489
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,589
Feb 11 - Feb 16, 2024
SOLD OUT
No transfer 2,489
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,589
Feb 18 - Feb 23, 2024
No transfer 2,489
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,589
Mar 3 - Mar 8, 2024
No transfer 2,489
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,589
Mar 17 - Mar 22, 2024
No transfer 2,489
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,589
Nov 10 - Nov 15, 2024
No transfer 2,039
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,139
Dec 8 - Dec 13, 2024
No transfer 2,039
Roundtrip airport transfer 2,139

At a Glance

When Marjory Stoneman Douglas published her book “The Everglades: River of Grass” in 1947, she called attention to the deterioration of the largest wilderness east of the Mississippi. Since then, the establishment of the National Park and painstaking restoration and preservation efforts have helped maintain the Everglades as a natural treasure. With experts and naturalists, kayak the subtropical rivers that flow through it to experience the beauty of its pristine estuaries and to gain personal understanding of what makes its ecology unique.
Activity Level
Outdoor: Spirited
Paddling up to six miles, walking up to two miles per day. Getting on and off motor coach and vans.
Small Group
Small Group
Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 13 to 24 participants.

Best of all, you’ll…

  • Experience a twilight paddle on the East River.
  • Paddle through the 10,000 Islands and learn the history of Calusa Shell Mound settlers who raised tomatoes on the islands in the early 1900s.
  • Learn about unique adaptations of flora and fauna from a naturalist in Big Cypress National Preserve.

General Notes

Kayaking equipment provided. Airport Transfer at added cost.
Featured Expert
All Experts
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Marya Repko
Author Marya Repko grew up in Hadlyme, Conn., but lived most of her adult life in Europe as a software engineer. After retirement, she moved to Everglades City, Fla., where her first book, “A Brief History of the Everglades City Area” has sold thousands of copies. She is also the author of other brief histories on the Fakahatchee and Sanibel Island. Marya is the president of the Everglades Society for Historic Preservation and co-editor of a bi-weekly local newspaper The Mullet Rapper.

Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.

Profile Image of Marya Repko
Marya Repko View biography
Author Marya Repko grew up in Hadlyme, Conn., but lived most of her adult life in Europe as a software engineer. After retirement, she moved to Everglades City, Fla., where her first book, “A Brief History of the Everglades City Area” has sold thousands of copies. She is also the author of other brief histories on the Fakahatchee and Sanibel Island. Marya is the president of the Everglades Society for Historic Preservation and co-editor of a bi-weekly local newspaper The Mullet Rapper.
Profile Image of Dillon Griffin
Dillon Griffin View biography
As a professional back country navigator, Dillon is blessed to have spent most of his career sharing areas such as The Everglades, in southern Florida, and the Appalachian Mountains of Western North Carolina. He credits his education and upbringing for instilling a strong passion for the great outdoors and exposing people to new environments. His programs reflect his understanding of the importance of preserving and protecting our public lands. While away from work, Dillon enjoys spending time with family, and in the outdoors.
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
The Everglades: River of Grass
by Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Before 1947, when Marjory Stoneman Douglas named the Everglades a ""river of grass,"" most people considered the area worthless. She brought the world's attention to the need to preserve the Everglades. In the Afterword, Michael Grunwald tells us what has happened to them since then. Grunwald points out that in 1947 the government was in the midst of establishing the Everglades National Park and turning loose the Army Corps of Engineers to control floods--both of which seemed like saviors for the Glades. But neither turned out to be the answer. Working from the research he did for his book, The Swamp, Grunwald offers an account of what went wrong and the many attempts to fix it, beginning with Save Our Everglades, which Douglas declared was ""not nearly enough.""
Endangered and Threatened Animals of Florida and Their Habitats (Corrie Herring Hooks Series)
by Chris Scott
A biological crossroads where temperate gives way to tropical and east blends into west, Florida has over twenty-five primary habitat types, several of which are unique to the state. Within these richly varied natural communities lives an astonishing abundance of animals and plants, making Florida one of the United States' most biologically diverse regions. At the same time, sadly, Florida is also one of the country's most ecologically imperiled regions, second only to California in the number of its animals and plants that have been federally designated as endangered or threatened. This fully illustrated book is a comprehensive, yet convenient and easy-to-understand guide to Florida's endangered and threatened animals and the habitats that support them. Chris Scott covers all 71 species, subspecies, or populations of mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, crustaceans, insects, corals, and mollusks. His species accounts describe each animal's listed status, identifying characteristics, historical and current distribution, biology, current threats, and conservation efforts. To make the crucial link between animals and their habitats, Scott also includes extensive discussions of Florida's natural regions; human impacts on the environment, including habitat destruction, pollution, and the introduction of invasive, nonnative species; and ongoing efforts to conserve and restore native plant and animal communities. With this wealth of information available in no other single volume, everyone who cares about the natural environment can help preserve one of America's biological treasurehouses.
The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the Politics of Paradise
by Michael Grunwald
The Everglades was once reviled as a liquid wasteland, and Americans dreamed of draining it. Now it is revered as a national treasure, and Americans have launched the largest environmental project in history to try to save it. The Swamp is the stunning story of the destruction and possible resurrection of the Everglades, the saga of man's abuse of nature in southern Florida and his unprecedented efforts to make amends. Michael Grunwald, a prize-winning national reporter for The Washington Post, takes readers on a riveting journey from the Ice Ages to the present, illuminating the natural, social and political history of one of America's most beguiling but least understood patches of land.
The Story of Barron Collier: A History for Younger Readers
by Marya Repko
Marya Repko delves into the story of Barron Collier; an entrepreneur whose investments in Florida early in the 1920's helped it become the place that it is today. After dropping out of high school at age 16, Collier went on to start a successful streetcar advertising business in New York City before turning his interests in Florida. He led numerous efforts to develop the Everglades swamps; building roads, hotels, and telephone systems, and attracting wealthy tourists to the region.
Adventure Guide to The Florida Keys & Everglades National Park (3rd Ed)
by Joyce Huber and Jon Huber
An adventure guide to the Florida Keys and the Everglades National Park. It offers a mix of practical travel information along with details of adventurous activities, which should be fun for everyone no matter what their age or ability. The volume provides information on the history, culture, climate and geography of the area, covering its people and their roots, museums, historic sites and local attractions. The adventures include diving, canoeing, birdwatching, deep-sea fishing, aerial tours and swamp hiking. Then there is advice on where to eat and stay, transportation, practical concerns, useful websites, e-mail addresses, tourism offices and detailed regional and town maps, that feature walking and driving tours.





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